


Linked in the Heart

by Derpy_is_awesome



Series: Every Breath I Take [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Cuban Lance (Voltron), Eventual Keith/Lance (Voltron), Gay Keith (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Keith (Voltron) is a Dork, Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Keith/Lance (Voltron)-centric, Korean Keith (Voltron), M/M, Mutual Pining, New series!!, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Keith/Lance (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Pre-Keith/Lance (Voltron), Socially Awkward Keith (Voltron), Soulmates, heh, k - Freeform, this, yes - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:14:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25497433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Derpy_is_awesome/pseuds/Derpy_is_awesome
Summary: Soulmate AU: Whatever you write/draw on your skin appears on your soulmate.--Lance has a soulmate. He likes his soulmate, and he enjoys the boy’s art. They write to each other often enough, until one day the writing stops. And eventually, so do the sweet little doodles Lance always loved seeing appear on his skin. Lance grows up, goes through his shit, and wonders what happened to his soulmate. And then, one day, long after he stopped writing to his soulmate, he decides to be a tad bit… Well… cheeky. And… It works out a lot better than planned when he ends up in a very interesting situation.--Lance is dying.That can be the only explanation for how fast his heart is pounding.It is him- it’s him, it’s him it’s him it’s him-
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Series: Every Breath I Take [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1847098
Comments: 15
Kudos: 85





	Linked in the Heart

**Author's Note:**

> Hehe... new series bros...
> 
> Couldn't help myself  
> I was inspired by a dream and multiple songs  
> and like  
> Soulmate au's
> 
> enjoy <33

When he wakes up that morning, Lance knows something is different.

He’s seven, almost eight, in a world where people have a predestined soulmate, their perfect other half, the person that they could trust and love and feel safe with.

There are many different ways for people to find their soulmates.

His sister Veronica has a navy blue string attached to her pinky. His brother Luis has a mismatched eye color, one eye that is bright blue, and the other, his natural olive iris. His other brother, Marco, has words, greetings from  _ two  _ different people he said, scrawled across his left and right wrists. His mother had a multicolored mark on her shoulder that had once been stained black, his father has a similar mark on his hand.

There isn’t ever a guarantee to how old someone will be when the trait that will define their soulmate appears, so when writing shows on Lance’s arm on a sunny Saturday, he doesn’t know what to make of it.

At first, he believes Luis was pranking him somehow.

When he realizes Luis doesn’t have any markers that are colored as the doodle on his wrist is, a bright red color that seems sparkly, with streaks of gold in it, he asks his mom for an explanation.

His mother tears up at the sight and is smiling brightly.

Lance wonders if it’s a good thing.

When she tells him it’s a mark from his soulmate, he thinks it is.

She confirms his thoughts.

“Mama, what’s a soulmate?”

“Well… A soulmate is someone who is meant to be with you. Soulmates have certain ways of finding each other that vary from person to person. You remember Veronica’s string?”

Lance nods, because yes, he does remember. He remembers watching his sister toy with the string with a fond smile, remembers trying to follow it when his sister wasn’t looking only for it to disappear under a doorway and not appear on the other side of the door.

“That string leads to Veronica’s soulmate. When the time is right, Vero will follow the string and it will lead her to the person on the other end of it. That person is her soulmate.” He had more questions.

His mother answered him patiently.

More doodles appeared on his arm, messy and small, and there was the slightest pressure against his arm whenever a new one appeared.

He liked it. 

He didn’t draw anything back.

It didn’t seem right, at the time, to interrupt the fun little drawings that only faded later, in the night, on their own without Lance’s aid.

Lance didn’t ever doodle anything in return. Not until two years later when a small sad face was drawn in red, followed by more sad little drawings that made Lance frown.

He didn’t want his soulmate to be sad.

Under the first sad face, he drew a happy face.

He didn’t see any new drawings after that.

~>

Lance entered middle school with a cheerful ‘good luck! :)’ written on the back of his hand in neat, loopy letters that he instantly liked.

Lance had learned a few things over the years.

His soulmate was a boy. When he learned as much, he was eight, and the difference between liking girls or liking boys wasn’t a problem. He didn’t mind it, didn’t even know it was a subject people discussed frequently.

His soulmate moved around a lot, and was, unfortunately, sad very often. There were times that Lance imagined he could feel his soulmate’s anguish. He hoped his soulmate wasn’t as sad as the drawings were. 

His soulmate was an artist. Lance was happy to watch their art improve over time, pleased with each little scribble that turned into a masterpiece Lance could never even try to replicate. Smiley faces and misshapen dogs and animals turned to detailed portraits clearly done hurriedly on his arm or palm, mini-comics that made Lance laugh in class along the crook of his elbow, and even the occasional question or a bit of small talk that moved Lance’s day along.

His soulmate didn’t talk much. He was a quiet guy.

He grew silent.

Eventually, maybe halfway through high school, Lance received no more drawings. No small happy faces. No words of encouragement or positivity. Nothing at all.

He worried about his soulmate.

Felt a little bad for himself.

After some time, Lance found himself trying to coax his soulmate into conversing again.

When that didn’t work, he stopped talking as well.

It was heartbreaking. After years of learning and spending time together in the only way they could, there wasn’t anything at all, and that hurt.

Entering college was a nightmare, one worse than high school.

Lance wanted to talk to his soulmate, rant, and tell him something to get a conversation flowing.

The pen he picked up didn’t touch his skin.

Entering his second year of college, Lance resorts to taunting the guy on the other end of this connection.

He learns who he is, goes out with girls and guys who are willing to hook up, lets them write their names and numbers on his arm, doesn’t tell them his soulmate can see it all. He knows karma will bite him in the ass for this later, but he doesn’t care. He enjoys having his fun.

His soulmate (why didn’t he ever ask for the guy’s name?) never replies.

After Lance grows bored of his own antics and stops hooking up, he makes friends.

Enter his third year of college, he wonders what happened to his soulmate.

Wonders if he’s even alive. Would Lance know if his soulmate was dead?

He shivers at the thought.

Lance may have stopped hooking up, but he still longs for a reaction from his soulmate. One morning, a Monday morning, he wakes up early and draws a dick on his cheek, deciding to simply try and provoke a reaction, then decides to be a bit nicer and adds a winky face blowing a kiss with a heart on the opposite cheek.

He washes the marker from his face after that and quickly gets ready for the day.

His roommate, Hunk Garret, chats with Lance as usual.

Lance buys a cheap breakfast at a Starbucks on his way to class.

Meets up again around noon with Hunk and his other friend, Katie Holt, who insists people call her Pidge.

They stop by a small smoothie shop that has decent food to eat there.

When the trio is halfway through lunch, Pidge’s phone lights up with a call and she leaves to answer. An odd reaction since Pidge despises phone calls. Lance and Hunk share a curious glance. Hunk shrugs. They return to eating.

When Pidge returns, she looks confused. “Uh, guys? I have a friend, he’s gonna drop by. He has a little… problem, I guess. He may stop by to eat with us, if that’s cool with you guys.” She explains, brows furrowed.

Hunk doesn’t mind. Lance doesn’t either. The trio waits, continuing their earlier conversations until someone new stumbles up to the table, out of breath with a dark red hoodie pulled over their face, a dark fringe covering their eyes.

“Pidge-” a nervous voice hisses, a hand grabbing Pidge’s arm before abruptly tugging the girl away.

Pidge yelps, but follows. Lance watches with a raised brow as she says something. Lance thinks he hears her say “Keith” in exasperation and assumes that’s the guy’s name.

He watches them as Keith tugs Pidge over to a less crowded part of the shop, tugging his hoodie down and-  _ Oh _ .

Holy crap.

Lance is going to need a moment.

_ Keith is fucking hot. _

He has long, dark hair, bangs falling into his eyes while the rest is pulled into a loose ponytail. He’s tall, maybe just a slight bit taller than Lance, with pale skin that makes his eyes - a startling pair of violet orbs - pop, with thick brows that are far too expressive for Lance’s poor bisexual heart.

Lance stares, astounded, because really how else is he supposed to act when someone, a mixture of cute and adorable and  _ sexy _ just so happens to be friends with one of his own friends!?

Lance’s gaze doesn’t waver, even when Keith pulls off his hood completely, hands previously hovering nervously near his cheek falling, taking in the sharp line of his jaw, the nice side profile, the dick drawn on his cheek, the-

Wait a minute.

Lance snaps back onto Keith’s pale cheek where a dick drawn with a navy blue marker sits, and Lance’s mouth falls open because  _ he drew that. _

Oh shit.

_ He drew that. _

Pidge is also staring at the drawing, eyebrows raised in surprise while her lips and pressing together in a thin line, the girl clearly trying not to laugh.

Keith narrows his gaze at her, scowling, before he seemingly blurts something out, pointing to his opposite cheek and Pidge seems to sober slightly, face falling into a more serious expression as she replies to Keith.

The two seem to talk back and forth for a while, too far for Lance to hear, but he is frozen, almost completely sure that Keith is his soulmate.

But then comes the question…

If Keith is his soulmate, then why did he stop talking to Lance?

What had happened to him?

~>

Keith left shortly after and Pidge returned, deep in thought.

Lance feels frantic as he watches Keith go, eyes wide as his heart screams at him, urges him to chase, to grab Keith, to confront him, to do- to do  _ something _ -

But then Keith is gone.

And Hunk is tapping Lance’s shoulder.

And he has another class soon.

And Pidge is gathering her things.

And Keith…

Keith is gone.

Lance’s soulmate is gone, red hoodie drawn up as the guy is quickly disappearing in the crowd, leaving Lance to stare after him.

“Who-” Hunk and Pidge pause as Lance finally speaks up, shaking himself from his own stupor, “Who was that?”

His voice cracks.

Pidge quirks a brow.

“That was my friend, Keith. I told you about him earlier, remember?” Lance nods, Pidge seems more confused.

“What was- what was on his face?”

Pidge snorts in amusement, “The dick drawing? Yeah, that was funny. He had a winky face blowing a heart drawn on his other cheek.”

Lance is dying.

That can be the only explanation for how fast his heart is pounding.

_ It is him- it’s him, it’s him it’s him it’s him- _

Lance can’t comprehend anything and it’s all suddenly rushing at him in a whirlwind of thoughts as he tries to understand  _ what happened, why did they stop talking, what was going to happen now, and- _

“Lance! We’re gonna be late if you don’t move your ass this instant!

And…

Lance is gonna be late to class.

He gathers his things and cleans up quickly.

He shouldn’t be late to class.

~>

He hesitates, later that night, with a Crayola marker almost pressing against his skin, cap between his teeth as he struggles internally. Hunk is somewhere else, texting his own soulmate, a nice girl named Shay, so Lance is alone.

He doesn’t think he would’ve been able to do this had Hunk been in the room.

He’s hesitating still, thinking too much.

Overthinking.

_ Come on McClain, _ he thinks,  _ you used to talk all the time, and he’s obviously still receiving what you write… You got this… _

He’s nodding to himself, taking a deep breath, closing his eyes as he inhales, opening them on an exhale, and about to press the tip of the marker down, when a red mark appears on the back of his hand.

_ Oh… _ Guess someone was beating him to the pot of gold.

(Not that he minded.)

It’s just one word, and one punctuation mark, but it makes Lance’s skin tingle as he watches the writing, loopy and cheerful as he could remember, appear across his tan skin.

‘Hello?’

Lance doesn’t even know Keith well - got a good minute of staring at him earlier - but this one little word and memories of how they used to talk together brings a smile to Lance’s face as he thinks fondly,  _ Dork. _

He takes his time deciding how to reply, and as his marker touches the inside of his forearm, he lets his smile widen and writes out a simple reply that would open up a world of opportunities.

‘ _ Hi :) I’m Lance _

_ Nice to meet you _ ’

**Author's Note:**

> hope you liked it!! please consider dropping a comment/kudos if you did :3  
> <33  
> have an amazing day!!!


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